Improvement in car-track clearers



I. N. CLARK.

v CAR-TRACK GLEARER. No. 189,696. Patented April17, 1877.

WITNESSES a I INVENTOR f I am 11/, M10

a 411 c0 AYN'Q,

ATTORNEY.

N- PEI'ERS, FNOTO-LITNDGRAFHER, WASHINGTON. D C,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES N. CLARK, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN. CAR-TRACK CLEARERS.

Specifioationforming part of Letters Patent No. 189,696, dated April 17, 1877; application filed January 30, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES N. CLARK, 0 Cleveland, in the county of Guyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a new and Improved Oar-Track Cleaner; and I'do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the same,'reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of'reference marked thereon.

The object I have in view is the production of a cleaner. to remove snow, sand, gravel, or

side elevation, and Fig. 3 a bottom view, of

the same.

Like letters denote corresponding parts in each figure.

A represents the platform of a street-car, and A the vertical dash-board or fender-of the same. To the under side of the platform, a short distance'back from the front of the car, is situated a steel bar, B. This bar extends nearly the entire width ofthecar, and is journaled at its ends in hangers a ct, pendent from the platform. Two arms, 0 U,

' constructed of steel, extend from the bar B,

to which they are secured in any suitable manner diagonally backward, so that their rear ends rest about over the car-track. To

the ends of these arms are attached the scrapers D D, of substantially the form shown in the drawing. Two other arms or braces, E E, made'of spring-steel, connect the scrapers and the bar B, extending from near the end of such bar to the top of the scrapers. F is a toothed rod, which projects upwardly on the front of the dash-board or fender A, and passes through a metallic loop, b, on the same. This rod has a proper handle, 0, on its upper end, by which it can be raised or lowered.

One side of the rod is constructed with a toothed rack, d, the teeth of which project downwardly, and the other side with a single upwardly-turned book, 0. The lower end of the rod F is pivoted to the outer end of an arm, G, which is connected rigidly with the bar B.

This arm G may be attached to the center of the bar, or to any point of the same, to correspond to the position of the rack-rod, which is designed to be placed either at the center or to one side of the dash-board or fender, as may be found convenient.

When the trackcleaner is not in use the operating rack-rod is pushed downwardly, which raises the scrapers, and the hook e is caught under one side of the loop b, to hold such scrapers in an elevated position.

For use, the rack-rod is unhooked, and drawn upwardly till the scrapers rest in the required position upon the track, when the rod is hooked in the loop by one of the downwardly-projecting notches d, thus keeping the scrapers down upon the track.

By having the arms and braces which support the scrapers constructed of spring steel, made thin to be quite elastic, they will yield to the upward pressure when the scrapers strike any immovable obstruction, and permit such scrapers to ride easily and without injury over the same without disturbing the position of the rack-rod.

From the simplicity of construction of my track-cleaner it can be built quite cheaply, and is very durable, as well as eiiicient in use.

Having thus fully described my invention, and explained some of its advantages, \vhatI claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a track-cleaner, the combination of the pivoted barB and spring arms and braces O U E E with the arm G and therack-rod F, all constructed and arranged substantially as described and shown.

This specification signed and witnessed this 6th day of January, 1877.

JAMES N. CLARK. Witnesses:

Eon. T. Tenor,

H. McQ. HARDING. 

